Technical Abstract:
The commercial use of fungal entomopathogens as biological control agents for insect pests requires the development of cost-effective methods for propagule production. The fungal propagules produced must be stable and effective in infecting and killing the target insect pest. Solid substrate fermentation, liquid culture fermentation, and two-phase production systems susing both liquid and solid substrate production methods have been employe to produce fungal spores and mycelial preparations. This talk will focus on strengths and weaknesses of these production systems and on the biological and economical factors which dictate their use. The impact of nutrition and environment on propagule stability and effectiveness will also be examined.